Agenda - 04-07-2009 - 5a - Laserfiche WebLink

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iff RESOLUTION #9626 RESOLUTION SUPPORTING T14E ADOPTION OF GENERAL LEGISLATION TO MODIFY THE JORDAN, LAKE RULES wI EREA.S, the City of Durham and its citizens have been leaders over the years in protecting the environment in wastewater treatment, water quality, land use regulation, buffer protection, open space preservation, and stormwater regulation; WHEREAS, since the impouiidment of Jordan Lake in 1953, Durham's citizens have sustained special and extraordinary costs to prevent nutrients front reaching Jordan Lake, such costs including over 40 million dollars over the last fifteen years to •educe nitrogen and phosphorus in wastewater and over 30 million dollars to address stormwater pollution; WHEREAS, Rules adapted for Jordan Lake in 2005 by the Environmental Management Commission are unprecedented in the state in mandating that the City of Durham and a few other local governments reduce nitrogen from "existing development" by 35% and phosphorus by 5 %, with a time frame for achieving Such reductions; WHEREAS., cost estimates of the inz fact of those Mules, using reliable data from state experts, show that Durham's citizens will pay at least 570 million dollars over the next 20 years to fund retrofits to comply with the Rules, In addition to costs they will pay for additional nutrient reductions in wastewater treat ment,, WHEREAS, compliance with the existing development requirement will cause Durham's stormwater rates to increase at least seven- -fold, with rates far smaller homes increasing from $26 a year to $200 a year, and for larger homes from $54 a year to $416 a year; WHEREAS, these costs are unnecessary for protection of the Lake, will not achieve expected results, will cause signil'tcant hardship to Durham's citizens, and will hamper further l economic devel opmeiit; WHEREAS, AS mandates to reduce nutrients a '''sting development could also force the City to condenin private p rope •ty, aid would result iz considerable valuable residential and commercial property being removed from the City's tax base, WHEREAS, prior to construction of Jordan Lake by the Army Corps of Engineers, water ■ r quality ty problems were predicted by scientists f ronn UNC- •Chapel Hill, NC State, and Duke, by q �� concerns led to �v�des �•ead conservationists, and by many local governments and these o p opposition in the 1960's and 1970's to the construction of the Lake; WHEREAS, in fact Jordan Lake performs better than' predicted, in part because local governme its and authorities in the Upper NeVv I lope arm — Durham City, Durham County, and the Orange water and Sewer Authority (OWASA) _- have funded approximately 100' million dollars of wastewater treatment upgrades to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus in the Labe; WHEREAS, Jordan Lake. functions well for all of its 'Intended uses — flood control, improved downstream water quality, conservation of fish and wildlife, dri�ak i�zg water supply,